


Tango at TWAT

by sadladybug



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-02-25
Updated: 2011-02-25
Packaged: 2018-03-05 00:56:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3099026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadladybug/pseuds/sadladybug
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bored and hot at the Western Air Temple, the gaang talks about Aang's days at a Fire Nation school, and an impromptu dance-off occurs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tango at TWAT

Katara swiped the back of her forearm across her forehead. Sighing to herself, she considered bending the sweat away, but decided it wasn’t worth the effort. Even in the shade, it was sweltering at the Western Air Temple. The breezes that normally wound their way through the temples many halls were absent, giving the air a thick and stifling quality. On account of the heat, the group had unofficially decided to take a rare afternoon off from training. Teo, the Duke, and Haru had retired to their rooms. The rest of the gang had gathered in the main courtyard of the temple around the fountain. Sokka and Toph were propped up against the lip of the fountain, shoulder to shoulder, dozing. Aang was lying on his back on the ground, lazily snapping puffs of wind into the air. Momo curled up next to him, watching the bending out of one eye but not motivated to chase it. Zuko was leaning against the wall, arms crossed and legs splayed out in front of him, seemingly irritated by everyone’s inability to function in the heat.

Katara sat an arm’s length away from Zuko, her satchel between them. Feeling parched, she reached for her satchel in order to gain access to the canteen within. As she tugged on the straps, the bag tottered and a few contents spilled out, including a scroll that rolled out and bumped into Zuko’s leg. He unfurled it, making a face. “Is this….is this Ozai?”

Aang sat up on his elbows and looked over. Zuko turned the paper so that he could see it. Aang smiled. “Yep! I made that in school. I used macaroni!”

From the fountain, Toph perked up temporarily while Sokka continued to doze. She snorted. “You kept that, Sugar Queen? What are you, his mom?”

Katara glowered at her, but before she could respond, Zuko spoke up. “You were in school?”

Katara leaned over and snatched the paper out of his hands, rolling it back up before replacing it in her bag. “Yes, Aang went to school for a couple of days when we first arrived in the Fire Nation.”

Aang sat all of the way up, crossing his legs underneath him. “We sort of borrowed some clothes, and it turns out I was wearing a school uniform. Some soldiers saw me and thought I was ditching, so I had no choice but to go along with it.”

Zuko gave Katara a sidelong look. “Still stealing things, I see. Didn’t you learn anything after that waterbending scroll?”

Katara colored. “It was for the greater good! We had to blend in! And anyway, who are you to talk—“

Aang interjected, trying to keep the peace. “Right. Anyway, parts of it were kind of fun, but there were some things about it that were weird. Like, there was a history lesson that was way off, saying that the Air Nomads initially attacked the Fire Nation.” He stopped for a moment and shook his head, dismissing the thought. “And during music lessons, I was yelled at by a teacher for trying to dance. Apparently dancing isn’t allowed. What’s that all about, Zuko?”

“Dancing is reserved for special occasions, only the nobility are taught formally. Regular citizens were discouraged from dancing years before I was born, though I’m not sure why.”

“Well, we thought those kids could use some fun, so we held a secret dance party for them! Remember that Katara?”

“You held a _secret dance party_? You guys were just trying to get caught weren’t you?” Zuko ran a hand over his face.

Katara rolled her eyes and ignored him. “Yes, Aang, I remember. The kids were all pretty shy at first, but then you got them out on the dance floor by showing them some of the old dance moves from the Fire Nation.”

Aang’s face lit up. “Yeah! Hey Zuko! Do you know how to do any of these?” Aang popped up, suddenly oblivious to the heat, and started to perform the moves that he remembered from that night: The Phoenix Flight and the Camelaphant Strut.

Zuko watched Aang perform the moves with interest. When he was through, he said, “I don’t think those have been around for quite some time, but I do recognize them.”

“Once I showed them it was ok, the kids really went wild! They loved to dance! They just needed a little nudge in the right direction. Oh, and Katara and I did our own special dance for the crowd! It was really neat.”

Zuko cocked his only eybrow. “You did a ‘special dance’ with him?”

Katara stuck her tongue out at the banished prince and stood up. “Wanna show ‘em how it’s done, Aang?”

Aang smiled back and approached her. He whispered conspiratorially to her: “just like last time, with the bending moves.”

They got in position. It was a little different this time without the candle light and music, but they did the best they could. They went through the dance just as they had before, simulating bending forms and doing cartwheels. It was fun, and Katara was laughing and breathless by the time it was over.

Zuko watched the whole sequence in silence. Katara returned to the place she was sitting near him. She turned to Zuko with a look of self-satisfaction. He returned the look. “You call that dancing?” he said.

Her face fell. “Oh, and I suppose you could do better?”

“Maybe you weren’t listening before. Remember when I said that _nobility_ were _required_ to learn dancing for formal occasions?”

She huffed. “Well, there’s no way to prove it unless you get up there and show us what you got, Sparky.”

Toph spoke up: “Hey, no one gets to use nicknames but me!”

“Come on Sifu Hotman, let’s see some royal moves!” Aang beamed.

Zuko stood up, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked like he regretted bringing it up; his tone had changed dramatically from smug to hesitant. “Um, well, the only thing is I’ll need a partner to do it. All the dances I know are done with two people.”

“Not me, Sparky. Too short and too blind.”

Sokka eyed him with one eyebrow raised. “Not on your life.”

Aang and Katara spoke at the same time.

“I could-“

“-I guess that leaves me.” Katara huffed.

Aang looked a little distraught. “Oh no, Katara, that’s ok. You don’t have to do that. I’ll dance with Zuko.”

“Well, the thing is Aang-“ Zuko started.

Katara threw up her hands. “Ugh! Let’s just get this over with.” She pushed herself away from the wall and into a standing position once again.

Zuko approached her, warily, as though she might bite him. “Look, Katara, if you don’t want to do this, I mean, we don’t have to….”

“Oh, can it. It’s just a dance.”

He looked past her for a moment, sighing. When his gaze returned to her, his face had changed to display a sense of resolve. He took her hand and instructed her to put it on his shoulder, and took her other hand in his own. His hands were very warm, surprisingly so. She rationalized that it was just the heat of the day. What she couldn’t rationalize was the surprise she felt or the heat in her cheeks when Zuko put a hand on her waist.

Once they were in position, he looked at her again. “Just follow me, ok? Do what I do.” And then they were moving, but the minimal instructions he provided weren’t enough. After the third time she stepped on his toes he growled in frustration and let go of her, stepping a few paces back.

“What? Why did you stop? I was just getting the hang of it!”

“You keep stepping on me! This is hopeless. Let’s just forget it.”

“Well if you explained it better, maybe I would understand it!”

“Well maybe if you would let me lead, you wouldn’t have to worry about it!”

“Well maybe if—“

“Hey you guys, maybe that’s enough for today?” Aang said. He looked unusually nervous.

Katara whirled on him. “Stay out of it Aang! I can do this!” He shrank back and remained silent. She turned back to Zuko. “Look, let’s just try it again.”

He seemed to consider her for a moment before he shrugged. “Ok. But seriously, when I said follow me, I meant it. I’m supposed to lead. It’s a simple box step, like this,” he demonstrated briefly, and she watched his feet closely. “Got it?”

She nodded and approached him again. She got back into position. “I’m ready.”

Without another word they were moving again. She struggled to let him take control of the movements, but soon the rhythm and pattern became more familiar. She counted in her head, watching her feet to make sure she didn’t step on Zuko’s toes. She found herself smiling, feeling more confident. _One two three, one two three…_

“Look at me.”

Startled out of her thoughts by the soft command, she faltered a little but quickly recovered. She looked up from her feet, irritated by the interruption in her concentration. “Hey, you made…me…”

Her eyes locked with his and the world seemed to fall away somehow. She moved without thinking. Her muscles seemed to respond instinctively in reaction to his movements. This close to him, she was reminded of pirates and trees and the way he had fallen so silent that night in Ba Sing Se. But more than that, she felt that maybe for the first time she was seeing him. Just being able to look at him like that and move so easily with him suspended her lack of trust in him in that moment. Something about dancing with Zuko seemed right in a way that she couldn’t articulate. He leaned forward and pulled her closer, and whispered “Ready?”

Before she could ask what he meant, he had swung her out with one hand and then curled her back in with a quick tug until she was chest to chest with him. He whispered again, “twirl, then dip.”

Again, she had no idea what this meant, but he quickly broke the contact between them and spun her around, this time pulling her back so that her back was to his front, and then he leaned her far back over one knee, holding her steadily by the arm across her back. When she came back up she was surprised to notice that she was smiling. She was actually enjoying herself, dancing with former Fire Prince Zuko.

The dance continued, variations on the tricks he had taught her interspersed with the traditional footwork and unwavering gaze. By then she was smiling openly, enjoying this moment and feeling happy, and something else she couldn’t name. Zuko whispered one last move to her: “Ok, we’re going to dip, but it will be different this time. I’m going to pull back and you’ll follow me, still in this same position. One of your legs will come up beside me for balance while I lean back. Ready to try it?”

She nodded enthusiastically. He swung her out again, but this time when he pulled her back in close he leaned back a bit on one leg, pulling her flush against him while she pressed the inside of her leg against his. Katara couldn’t control the blush in her cheeks; whether it was from the close proximity to her former enemy or the look in his eyes, she couldn’t tell. They moved out of that position and after a few more flourishes Zuko broke away from her and bowed in the traditional Fire Nation style. When he stood he was smiling, a genuine grin that she didn’t often see.

She was enchanted. She couldn’t seem to catch her breath. Her heart raced and that pesky color refused to leave her cheeks. But not to give him the satisfaction of knowing all of this, instead she shrugged said, “Well, that was ok I guess.”

She expected him to get upset or argue, but he did neither. He just continued smiling at her, a little conspiratorially, before walking off toward his room.

She sat down, still a little light-headed from the encounter. What had just happened? That wasn’t supposed to be fun! But it had been fun, and something else she didn’t want to think about too hard.

Toph, still feigning sleep against Sokka’s shoulder, held up one finger:”Sparky one, Sugar Queen zero.”

Katara rolled her eyes and ignored her, not even wanting to ask what she meant. Aang approached and sat down next to her. “Wow, I guess Zuko really can dance! You, uh, you looked really beautiful out there.” He flushed and looked away.

“Thanks Aang. But I think I’m going to get some rest and escape from this heat. Does it feel like it got hotter all of a sudden?”

Toph sniggered.

“Ok, well see you later Katara!” Aang called after her.

* * *

 

Later that night, after all the dishes has been put away and the members of the gang were headed to sleep, Katara found Zuko sitting on the lip of the fountain in the courtyard. She approached him nervously, although she wasn't sure why. This was the person she fought with day and day out, why should she feel shy around him right now?

"Hey, Zuko?"

He turned to look at her before standing and facing her. "Hey Katara."

She stood there for a moment, trying to frame what she wanted to say, all while avoiding Zuko's expectant gaze. She took a deep breath. "So I was wondering…I mean if it wouldn't be too much trouble…could we maybe…um, dance again sometime? Cause I really liked it and I think I could get better but I need someone to practice with, it's like bending you know? I just need a good teacher and-"

He cut her off from her ramblings. "Katara."

"Yes?"

He smiled and held out his hand. "Come here."


End file.
